An electric power generation system typically includes a power plant for generating electricity that is provided to various customers via an electric grid. The amount of electricity that is consumed by the customers not only depends on the type of the customer (residential customer, industrial customer, commercial customer, etc.) but on the nature of the equipment that is coupled to the electric grid as well. An industrial customer, for example, may have one or more large motors that are subjected to varying loads. The motors may accordingly draw a large amount of electricity from the electric grid at some times and then reduce consumption at other times. A residential customer may use lights during the evening hours and turn off these lights later at night. The electric power generation system has to not only take into consideration such variations in power consumption but has to also be designed to withstand transient power conditions that may be introduced into the electric grid as a result of relatively abrupt changes in power usage.
The transient power conditions generally last for a short period of time and create large voltage spikes that can cause harm to equipment if left unaddressed. Various traditional electric power generation systems incorporate safeguards to provide protection against such transients, with varying levels of effectiveness. Some fail to react fast enough to be effective, while some others fail to dampen the transient voltages to a desired level.